Blog
Keeping you up to date on the progress of the Named Person scheme and the NO2NP campaign.
FIND OUT WHAT YOUR NAMED PERSON IS SAYING BEHIND YOUR BACK
Posted 8 years ago
Ever wondered what personal information public bodies have recorded about you or your children? How a conversation with a doctor or teacher has been summarised in a report?
You have the right to request copies of any personal information an organisation may be holding about you. This is known as a Subject Access Request.
Find out how to make a Subject Access Request
‘THEY TRIED TO SEPARATE ME FROM MY NEWBORN SON’
Mum of two, Kayley Hutton, was shocked to receive a 120-page dossier containing notes recorded by ‘named persons’ when she made a Subject Access Request a few years ago.
Kayley had experienced a distressing ordeal which almost resulted in her newborn son being taken away from her. She had no idea it was because officials had been mis-recording information about her, making her out to be an ‘unfit’ parent.
The recording and sharing of sensitive information has already been on the increase since the introduction of Named Person pilot schemes, and this is expected to grow as the scheme is rolled out across Scotland in August this year.
The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has stated that the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act, which contains the Named Person provisions, will lower the threshold for data sharing to ‘wellbeing’, making it easier for agencies to share sensitive information about you or your children.
Practitioners will no longer have to show there is a ‘risk of significant harm’ to a child, but can pass on private information if they think there is simply a ‘wellbeing’ concern, which we all know can be highly subjective.
MAKE A SUBJECT ACCESS REQUEST
Follow this link to the ICO’s official guide, where you will find all the information you need and letter templates to make the process as easy as possible:
Find out how to make a Subject Access Request
TIP: Organisations have a 40-day deadline to respond to requests. It is a good idea to keep a detailed paper-trail of any correspondence if you need to chase a request or lodge a complaint.
CONTACT US
If the reply to your Subject Access Request discloses information which alarms you and you think it may help the campaign against Named Persons, contact us by emailing: stories@no2np.org
We understand any information you share with us may be extremely sensitive and will be treated confidentially. We won’t use any information without your explicit consent.